Eric Bledsoe’s two-way impact is key to the Bucks’ title aspirations

Eric Bledsoe is among the NBA’s best guards, and the Milwaukee Bucks need him to play like it to win the title.

For much of this NBA season, the Milwaukee Bucks have sat perched atop the league. They boast the best record and net rating at 53-12 and plus-10.7, respectively. Their franchise superstar, Giannis Antetokounmpo, is en route to his second consecutive MVP. Khris Middleton is flirting with a 50-40-90 campaign and should find his way onto an All-NBA squad when teams are announced. Brook Lopez has been among the top rim protectors and is a candidate for an All-Defensive honor. Those three pillars often headline discussions around this group, and rightfully so. But Eric Bledsoe, despite earning All-Defensive First Team in 2018-19, warrants more recognition than he’s received to this point.

Perhaps the stench of underwhelming playoff tenures the past two seasons lingers heavily and clouds perception. Perhaps everyone exhausts and directs their praise entirely toward Giannis, Middleton and Lopez. The reason matters not, because it requires a host of talent to be on pace for 65-plus wins, just as Milwaukee was before the season’s suspension. Bledsoe is an integral cog in the ancillary gears that rotate the Bucks machine — and has been since head coach Mike Budenholzer assumed the reins two years ago.

Because Budenholzer prevents his team’s key players from amassing heavy minutes, Bledsoe’s counting stats have not popped off the page either of the past two seasons. In 28.3 minutes per game, he’s averaged 15.7 points, 5.5 assists, 4.6 rebounds and 1.3 steals on 57.8 percent true shooting. Extrapolate those marks to a 36-minute data set and he’s up to, roughly, 20-7-6-1.5, which is a bit more flashy and eye-catching.

Augmenting that contextualized box-score slash line is lofty standing in Player Impact Plus-Minus the last two years — including the 2018-19 playoffs — where Bledsoe ranks 17th overall (plus-4.29) and fifth among guards, trailing Stephen Curry, James Harden, Chris Paul and Damian Lillard. Sure, that metric likely exaggerates his league-wide standing, but there exist discernible reasons why he fares so well and has been, roughly, a top-30 player in actuality over that span.

The Bucks distanced themselves from the rest of the league this season on the basis of an elite defense. They lead the NBA in defensive rating (101.6) by over three points (the Toronto Raptors are second at 104.9) and Bledsoe is their tone-setter at the point of attack. In pick-and-rolls, Milwaukee trains and instructs it guards to fight over the top of screens or neutralize them all together by prompting the ball-handler to reject the screen. Bledsoe is an expert at fulfilling these requirements, which means he stays attached to his assignment. From there, he cuts off driving lanes, eliminates the area necessary for pull-up 3s and invites mid-range jumpers or funnels guys to the paint, where Giannis or Lopez, two of the NBA’s top rim protectors, are waiting to alter shots or force teams to reset the offense altogether.

Most often, this results in opponents settling for mid-range jumpers. According to Cleaning the Glass, teams portion 32.0 percent of their field goal attempts from that range for Milwaukee, which is the sixth-highest clip in the league, though they only shoot 37.5 percent there, giving the Bucks the NBA’s stingiest mark. Similarly, Bledsoe’s ability to remain involved in plays after a ball-screen is set pairs well with Giannis’ and Lopez’s anchoring of the paint to deter shots at the rim. Nobody allows a lower percentage of attempts at the rim (29.3 percent) or success rate (54.7 percent) in that area than Milwaukee this season.

What makes Eric Bledsoe so important to the Milwaukee Bucks?

In part, that stems from Bledsoe’s screen navigation. He doesn’t die on screens — often rendering them obsolete — and extend guys a head of steam to the rim or wide open real estate for pull-ups. Having two back-line enforces of Giannis’ and Lopez’s caliber certainly are significant contributors to this elite pick-and-roll defense and rim protection, but rostering someone who legitimately influences the freedom ball-handlers have coming off of a pick is crucial. The impact of soft or hard drop coverage is maximized with a point-of-attack defender like Bledsoe. Big men, generally, are going to affect the outcome of a pick-and-roll. Bledsoe, and most guards, affect the path a pick-and-roll takes and how it unfolds, enabling his teammates to complete the job. It’s a symbiotic relationship.

Bledsoe’s career-low steal rate of 1.6 percent may suggest a down year defensively, but Milwaukee’s scheme is wired to be risk-averse, ranking 24th in turnover percentage each of the past two seasons. Instead of promoting roaming and gambling, the Bucks preach and teach defensive positioning, including with instinctual playmakers such as Giannis, Bledsoe or Donte DiVincenzo. Their philosophy, it seems, is turnovers will arise when necessary if their personnel adheres to the established plan. The majority of Bledsoe’s takeaways this year are of “right place, right time” nature, enforced by keen reaction speed and a 6-foot-8 wingspan.

With that 6-foot-8 wingspan, functional strength vastly exceeding his 6-foot-1 stature and the talent to fluidly shed screens, Bledsoe also excels denying off the ball, even against taller perimeter creators. On various occasions this season, he’s flummoxed offensive engines with his length, strength and screen navigation, isolating them away from the action for stretches and causing possessions to sputter.

All of these habits and physical traits merge to make him one of the league’s most valuable point-of-attack defenders, placing fourth in DPIPM (plus-1.85) among players in that role this season, according to Basketball Index (sixth last season, plus-1.3). In conjunction with how well he complements Lopez and Giannis, as well as DiVincenzo, who’s subtly asserted himself as a premier nail defender this year, there are few guards who outpace his offerings on that end. He should, once again, be in the discussion for an All-Defensive Team berth.

Bledsoe doesn’t solely operate in defensive concordance with Giannis and the Bucks. His offensive skill-set is indispensable, too. What he — and the entire team — understands is the substantial edge in efficiency transition offense holds over half-court offense. The 15th- and 16th-ranked transition offenses this season are the Washington Wizards (1.109 PPP) and Detroit Pistons (1.106). The 15th- and 16th-ranked half-court offenses are the Philadelphia 76ers (0.965) and Raptors (0.96). If you employ the requisite personnel, there is a considerable benefit to generating transition opportunities before defenses are set.

Milwaukee, paced by Giannis and Bledsoe, does, in fact, employ the requisite personnel. Despite sitting 26th in PPP (1.072), it tops the league in transition possessions with 1,576 and is one of only three teams with over 1,400 total possessions. Giannis, of course, is the headliner, with a league-leading 424 possessions (1.12 PPP, 51st percentile), while Bledsoe sits 11th at 266 (1.049 PPP, 33rd percentile). Factoring in possessions that include assists bumps Giannis to 502 (still first in volume, 1.357 PPP, 44th percentile) and Bledsoe to 351 (10th, 1.396 PPP, 55th percentile). The middling efficiency for each is of little concern because both manufacture better offense on the break than in the half-court for themselves and the Bucks as a whole.

Whether it be following a turnover, missed shot or made basket — the situation is largely immaterial — Bledsoe is constantly looking to push and create early offense. When he’s on the floor, the Bucks’ transition frequency increases by 4.1 percent, an important note because it signifies that he helps manufacture simplified scoring opportunities for his team. Often flanked by multiple shooters, he’ll attract defenders and whip passes for open 3s. Or, he’ll spot a plunging Giannis, the best finisher in the game, for a dish-to-dunk score. Maybe, his blend of speed, power and strength overwhelm backtracking opponents and he’ll call his own number at the rim. Similar to the defensive puzzle, Bledsoe is a piece that nestles in suitably with various surrounding components.

In half-court settings, he predominantly shares secondary handling responsibilities with Middleton behind Giannis. Once again, he fills the gaps to accompany Middelton’s pull-up shooting, tough bucket-getting trait and lack of rim pressure by being a dominant slasher. Bledsoe is entrenched as one of the best interior scoring guards in the league, rivaled by only a handful of peers, namely Derrick Rose and Russell Westbrook.

This season, 38.3 percent of his field goals occur at the rim and he ranks in the 82nd percentile in efficiency (1.312 PPP). Last season, 38.3 percent of his field goals occurred at the rim and he ranked in the 86th percentile in efficiency (1.312 PPP). Sit back to admire that remarkable consistency and elite finishing for a 6-foot-1 guard.

Sourcing this skill are his distinct athletic package and aforementioned 6-foot-8 wingspan. He’s a swift, bruising driver with marquee body control, change of direction, acceleration, deceleration and functional strength. Even when defenders lay off and invite him to shoot, he’s capable of manipulating all that room in a manner most small guards cannot. He has savvy, ambidextrous counters and adjustments to evade rim protectors, relying on impressive contortion to do so, and finishes from funky angles.

Bledsoe attacks the rim in an assortment of ways. He can rev up and blow by defenders in pick-and-roll or utilize manipulative start-stop tricks to toy with drop bigs. He can zip through a crease to capitalize on a previously forged advantage. Milwaukee’s well-stretched floor certainly helps him, but his craft and the way he maneuvers in slivers of space highlight that it’s more than just context-derived prowess. He’s finished in the 85th percentile or better in pick-and-rolls and 69th percentile or better in isolation the past two seasons, showcasing his merits as a slasher and utility for the Bucks, serving as their chief non-Giannis self-creator on the interior.

His dribble-drive game also elevates him as arguably Milwaukee’s second-best playmaker. Middleton is a better shooter and scorer, but Bledsoe’s penetration and finishing mean defenses have to prioritize him once he’s in the paint, potentially closing the gap. While he’s not a forward-thinking facilitator, he compromises defenses and touts a strength-flexibility combo that expand and partially compensate for his milquetoast vision. It’s just easier to create for others when you have the athletic tools he does. His margin for error is broadened and he executes reads from spots on the floor that many others cannot.

Most importantly, he tends to maximize the value of his assist opportunities. Among 49 players who logged 250-plus dimes this season, Bledsoe was ninth in percentage of Moreyball assists (3s and at the rim) at 87.4 percent, according to PBP stats.

Bledsoe is a badgering point-of-attack stopper who has the versatility to tackle multiple positions. He’s a bedrock of the Bucks’ elite defense, particularly in pick-and-roll, where he regularly wiggles over screens with ease and guides ball-handlers into Giannis’ and Lopez’s fearsome rim protection. His finishing and self-creation aptly slot next to Middleton as a secondary ball-handler, delivering pivotal offensive value. Aside from Giannis, nobody else breaks down defenders like him and his paint pressure yields efficient possessions.

One looming hurdle confronts Milwaukee, however, on its march toward an NBA championship. Each of the past two postseasons, Bledsoe’s offensive impact has diminished and cast a prominent role in the Bucks’ demise. Across 22 playoff games since 2018-19, he averaged 13.6 points, 4.1 assists, 3.7 rebounds and 1.0 steals on 50.0 percent true shooting in 29.5 minutes a night.

The struggles coalesced against the Raptors in last year’s Eastern Conference Finals, when he averaged 10.2 points, 4.2 assists, 4.3 rebounds and 1.0 assists on 39.5 percent true shooting (.294/.172/.762 split) in six games. Toronto slouched off of him, muddied Giannis’ driving lanes and post-ups, and dared Bledsoe to burn them beyond the arc. This approach perplexed him to a degree and he couldn’t ever quite seem to take advantage of the space afforded to him, both as a driver and shooter. The former because of Toronto’s bevy of length and size on the interior, the latter of his own doing.

Throughout his last two playoff showings, he’s posted an OPIPM of plus-0.38, well below his regular-season mark of plus-3.53. Off the ball, his slow wind-up and non-threatening 3-point numbers (33.1 percent on catch-and-shoot 3s since 2017-18) permit opponents to prioritize containing Giannis or others without fear of repercussions. Teams that embrace tall ball, such as the Raptors, Sixers and Los Angeles Lakers, might pose further problems in the postseason for him: a 6-foot-1 guard with murky shooting gravity whose foremost scoring avenue is in the key.

Separate from the obvious solution of “make more 3s when left open,” Bledsoe should exploit the disrespect into an advantage and become more active as a cutter. It’s a commonly suggested counter for guys who don’t command noteworthy regard as a shooter (see: Ben Simmons), but for Bledsoe and the Bucks, this actually seems applicable.

He’s such a tremendous finisher. Giannis occupies attention from virtually all five sets of eyes on defense; Middleton’s pull-up game also elicits pronounced concern from opponents. Milwaukee has the shooters for Bledsoe to trigger kick-out passes if defenders collapse on him inside, while Lopez’s floor-spacing diminishes the chances a rim protector is anchored at the basket. If he can make the proper reads, an inconsistency of his as a creator, there’s reason for optimism and it’s panned out on occasion.

Set to conclude a second-consecutive regular season as the NBA’s best team, Milwaukee is stocked with talent beyond its franchise superstar, one of whom is Bledsoe. Laying the foundation out top on the perimeter for his squad’s elite defense, he mandates serious consideration for another All-Defensive Team spot.

His offensive play style is a cornerstone of the Bucks’ successful efforts to instill extensive transition volume. As one of the preeminent drivers and finishers in the league, his half-court creation is a necessary presence alongside Giannis and Middleton. On the aggregate, his two-way value has quietly made him one of the 12 or so best guards around the association, especially this year.

Yet for this regular-season juggernaut to accomplish its goal of a championship, Bledsoe must remain a viable offensive guard in the elder stages of the playoffs. He cannot wilt. The Bucks need their point guard, who’s wielded an All-Star case the past two years, to maintain his value.

There is far too small of a sample to project continued growing pains for Bledsoe and expect him to always under-perform. This summer and fall could very well be different than last spring. Regardless, he’s been overshadowed by teammates the past two regular seasons only to stick out in a glaringly negative light during the 2018-19 Eastern Conference Finals and hand the average fan ammunition to trivialize his game. The best way to garner the notoriety he’s earned is shine in the brightest of moments and help bring a title back to Milwaukee.